AURELIEN DUCROZ - SKI
PRESENTATION
INTERVIEW
How did you get into skiing and what drew you to freeride?
My father is a mountain guide and my mother a ski instructor, so I got into it when I was little. I started skiing at the age of two and took part in my first downhill competitions at the age of five. I stayed involved in the sport for the next ten years or so, until I was 14. After that, I changed tack a bit and got involved in ski jumping because at the time I was too little and too light to be really good at downhill. I found myself getting thrashed and it began to bug me. Ski jumpers, on the other hand, had to be small and light so I said to myself: "Let's give it a shot.". By 2002, I was a bit sick of the federation set-up. I was also tired of going hungry. I'd been on a diet for five years to make sure I was as light as possible for jumping. Psychologically, it was tough. I couldn't take it any more and I really missed being on the mountain. You're more detached from the mountain environment and from nature in ski jumping than in freeride, and that was something I couldn't deal with any more. That's why I decided to give it all up and go back to my skiing roots, this time exploring freeride.
What are your memories of your first win at the Nissan Xtreme-Verbier 2006 and at the World Championships 2009?
2006 was amazing because at the time I hadn't been into freeride for very long. I was 23 and was one of the youngest freeriders on the circuit. I tied for first with Kaj Zackrisson, who is ten years my senior, so it was a bit like making a name for myself in the sport. It's the biggest and most technical race, the one that attracts the top riders and it was there that I was staking my claim in the freeride world. I'll never forget winning the Freeride World Championships in 2009 because it was super stressful right up until the last day of competition, not knowing who was going to win the Nissan Xtreme - Verbier or the World Championships. In the end, I won the world title. That was something I had been fighting for for a number of years. I had achieved my goal and it was an unbelievable day.
Do you do any specific training in the off-season to stay in shape and get ready to compete again?
My summer prep includes a number of stages. I do training sessions three or four mornings a week to make sure I'm really in shape and to keep my physical condition throughout the summer. I need the physical training to be able to take the punishment and I prefer to do that with a personal trainer to motivate me and push me to go even further. I like doing things that way and it works for me.
What kind of qualities does a good freerider need to have? (And what advice would you give?)
You need to be aware of the risks, you need a good head on your shoulders and you need a healthy dose of humility when it comes to the mountain. When you start to really doubt yourself and get scared, that's when accidents happen, because you get sucked into this kind of paranoia that just sort of snowballs... For me, fear is something that holds you back. The day I feel that fear is the day I stop lining up on the mountain to compete.
Tell us a little more about your other passion: sailing.
It's a new departure for me and an environment I'm not particularly accustomed to, in which I have everything to learn and which really interests me. I have a great appetite to find out more. That's why I put together the Latitude Neige Longitude Mer project, which involves tackling four seasons in the space of two years. Starting this autumn, the goal is to do two seasons of the Freeride World Tour and two seasons of the Mini 6.50, which is a solo transatlantic race in 6.5m yachts. At the end of the second year, I'll attempt a solo transatlantic crossing, from La Rochelle to Salvador de Bahia, without communications or assistance. I've got two years to prepare. In both cases, you feel like a bit of an intruder: in the first instance, whether you're on a 50° slope or in 50cm of fresh powder, its not the kind of environment that nature designed for skiing; in the second, crossing the Atlantic in a boat that is 6.5 metres long is not the kind of thing nature intended, so you feeling like you're trespassing a little. But if you respect your surroundings and keep your head on your shoulders, things will work out. You just have to be careful.
What are your main goals for the coming season?
I of course aim to return to the Freeride World Tour, and if I do, it won't be to sell myself short... I'll be there to win!